Health and safety at work

If not correctly managed, the water in cooling towers and evaporative condensers can be a source of legionella bacteria. If inhaled in a water droplet, the bacteria can cause Legionnaire’s disease which is a potentially serious, sometimes fatal, illness.

The law

• The Notification of Cooling Towers and Evaporative Condensers Regulations 1992
• Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974
• Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002

What do I need to do?

You must register the tower with Westminster City Council. This can be done by completing the form below and returning it to [email protected]

In addition, you must also: 

• Appoint a suitably trained responsible person to oversee the system.
• Carry out a risk assessment of the tower water system to look for potential sources of legionella bacteria.
• From the assessment, put controls (both physical and chemical) in place to prevent the growth of legionella.
• Maintain these controls and a monitoring regime to ensure the system remains stable and free from bacterial growth.

If a cooling tower is no longer in operation, it is a legal requirement under The Notification of Cooling Towers and Evaporative Condensers Regulations 1992 to notify the local authority in writing. This can be done by emailing [email protected]

Please clarify if the tower is removed or decommissioned and drained down but likely to be put back into use.  

Further guidance

For more information on legionnaire’s disease please visit HSE Legionnaire's disease 

For specific guidance on the management of cooling towers visit HSE Cooling Towers